This past week, players like Tanzim Hasan Sakib and Taskin Ahmed have made important runs and demonstrated that they are capable of more than just hitting boundaries when called upon.
Against Sri Lanka last week, Bangladesh’s lower-order batting displayed some signs of improvement. First, on March 9, in the third Twenty20 International in Sylhet, Rishad Hossain and Taskin Ahmed delivered some heavy blows. After that, Taskin continued to contribute at the bat in Friday’s second ODI in Chattogram, enabling Towhid Hridoy to reach a career-high wicketless 96 and helping Bangladesh overcome a middle-order lull.
Together with Taskin, who hit two fours and a six in his undefeated 10-ball 18, Hridoy scored 50 runs in the final 3.5 overs. In the T20I on March 9, Taskin also hit two sixes and three fours, while Rishad hit a record seven sixes.
Hridoy was also assisted by Tanzim Hasan Sakib, a rookie, on Friday for the seventh wicket. They added 47 by rotating their strikes sensibly. At a time when Bangladesh had recently lost Mehidy Hasan Miraz, their only recognized batter, Tanzim made eighteen off thirty-three balls.
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The Bangladesh lower-order, according to Hridoy, is capable of managing both styles of batting. He stated he had enough faith in them to return the favor. They don’t seem like tail-enders to me. They seem like batters to me. They’re demonstrating their ability. I think highly of them.
“They did a good job at batting. I advised them to have a positive outlook. Anytime you feel like it, hit. I asked Taskin bhai if I should get the strike. I advised him to get his immunizations as well.
“Death over runs frequently have a significant effect. When a team bats well, confidence levels rise. Sakib and Taskin bhai were both excellent companions of mine. The team constantly benefits from it.”
Sri Lanka
Tanzim claimed he was sorry to leave the field, having just reached mid-off in the 47th over, because he had intended to stay with Hridoy until the very end. “I attempted to use the bat to assist Hridoy bhai. My strategy was to charge in the last half of the inning. I was not happy with my escape route. Two overs later, I ought to have played that kind of shot. We may have received more runs from that.
“Hridoy bhai told me to play with some common sense. He assured me that he would take care of the dot balls in the end. It was me who chose the singles. We’re really close. We have extensive mutual knowledge. In the field, it’s always helpful.”
Bangladesh has faced difficulties due to a lengthy tail after they elected to use six specialist hitters and Mehidy at number seven. He had traditionally batted at No. 8 in all forms to extend the batting order, but the Bangladeshi team management chose to take a chance by using five complete bowlers due to his batting improvements. Despite Shakib Al Hasan’s absence as an all-rounder, they have chosen five bowling specialists. And it finally appears that their faith in the tail to pitch in when necessary is beginning to pay off.
Taskin Ahmed shot to fame on the internet even before he was close to making his debut abroad. People became fascinated when they saw a Bangladeshi fast bowler ripping it past the batsman and hitting the wicketkeeper’s gloves pretty hard and high in a 2012 video of his session against the England Under-19s that ended up on YouTube.
Taskin is a tall fast bowler who shares some physical characteristics with Mashrafe Mortaza. He enters the bowling action with a clean run-up and bowls with a high-arm action. He is a graduate of the cricket academy scene in Dhaka, having trained at the Abahani ground nets while residing in the neighboring city of Mohammadpur.
After making his debut in the domestic stage in the 2013 BPL with a four-wicket haul, he was sidelined for almost a year due to a knee injury. Taskin underwent rehabilitation during that period, and when he gradually recovered, he bowled frequently in the Bangladeshi nets.
His talent impressed the coaching staff, who kept him under observation for a while until they felt it was appropriate to test him. In June 2014, Taskin made his World T20 debut for Bangladesh. He was kept in the ODI team for the India series.
